The divided self

[Tony]

The Divided Self

Modern psychology believes a 'divided self' is an 'illusory' self, separated from our 'real' self
– it is a disorder. The popular view is that the self is the experiencer, and that there isn't
any experiences without the experiencer, the self.
The disorder is acting out what we are not, and we therefore create a false self.

I once asked a psychologist, “What is normal?” She replied, “Normal is what is normal for
that person.” So if people act out of character, then that is abnormal.
If this becomes too exaggerated in the mind of a psychologist, then it needs treatment.

Of course there will be occasions when people do need help, but unfortunately in this modern
life of stress, processed foods, added chemicals, it is more than likely that people cannot be
themselves. People put on a social 'face' that is bound to crack now and again.
Common sense tells us all this.

If only they meditated!

Buddhism would agree: there has to be an experiencer to experience.
This is the same as saying, without awareness we would not be aware of anything.
Psychologists are pre-supposing that the experiencer is pure and uncontaminated.

Through meditation, we recognise that the experience - or awareness/perception -
takes place in the mind. We see that we identify with this experience so strongly that we call
it the 'experiencer'. We then notice that the mind is contaminated with thoughts and concepts:
these act as a filter through which we experience everything.
The 'normal-for-that-person-experiencer' is already contaminated with impure perceptions.

There is your abnormality!

And that is the normal for everyone. How abnormal we are will depend on how strongly we
cling to those conceptual filters in the mind, which distort our experiences.

We need to take a subtle step back. This is what meditation is: it lets everything drop,
into pure perception, pure experience, pure awareness, that is experiencing all this.
The experiencer also drops, as that is a concept. There is merely pure experience.
Or the divine, as it is pure. That is what we are.

What is realised through meditation

The division between pure experiencer and contaminated experiencer came when we lost
pure perception. When we lost pure awareness and became distracted by contaminates
which gave rise to obstacles which act as filters.

The pure experiencer is primordial pure wisdom free from elaboration. It is the divine within.

The Divine is the eternal within us
and is based on truth,
while ephemeral concepts
are based on temporary illusions.

As we are not enlightened yet, we must accept this divided self, this separation of reality
in unreality. Our confusion is our path. It is here that we can practise cutting through the
contaminations. It's like this: Divinity, Path, Fruition.

Divinity is our basic purity.
Path is our confusion about that purity.
Fruition is recognising that the confusion about our basic purity never existed.

Our conflict has always been that we have known this all along, in the back of our minds,
but have been distracted...divided!

Now you are not... just keep remembering.






And it's free – of contaminates, filters, and fees!



Tony -formerly known as pie'n'eal
buddhainthemud.com

[Georgesdragon]

This has got the be the most interesting post on PA. Although I`m not sold on Buddha, it is very informative. You can keep the UFO and alien deception posts there are no such things only fallen angels and demons. Psychologists are normal ? fit to judge others degrees of normality? mmm.

[Tesla_WTC_Solution]

Do any of you ever have a panic attack without realizing it's happening?
Like, it's being suppressed because of social pressures and sometimes not even experienced?

@@ until after it's too late to do anything lol

[Carmen]

I remember years back when I first understood and explained the idea/concept of pure awareness and, shall we say, tainted awareness. I used this analogy:

Imagine you answered the door to a six foot man. In the first instant your eyes meet, there is only pure awareness. After that first instant of pure awareness your mind is flooded with belief, past experience and conditioning. Your idea/experience/opinion of men, his facial expression indicating his attitude, clothes, facial features like tattoos. Everything is taken into account to govern your response/reaction to this person. Your whole mind is then conditioned. Gone after the first fleeting moment is that instance of pure perception.

[joeecho]

Words cannot define the indefinable. Objects cannot define the unobjectionable.

Side Note: Is that why, to the uninitiated, a person trying to describe truth, reality, spirit etc.. sounds like a nut job?


All is self, thus, there is no self.

One might ask then, what is the 'divided' self?

That is like asking, "Who am I?"

We try to answer that question by saying, "I am..." in hope of stopping the never-ending echo. But, we ultimately know that that is not ever going to be good enough. (The divided self = Echo)

A favorite quote: If I am I because I am I, and you are you because you are you, then I am I and you are you. But if I am I because you are you and you are you because I am I, then I am not I and you are not you!

-- Kotzker Rebbe

In closing....

Who wrote and/ or posted this comment?

Not I

[Carmen]

For me, it was understanding what pure awareness is and then finding ways to expand that. It gives us the ability to witness our beliefs and conditioning which makes up our personality image, which is apart from our pure awareness/silent witness Self.

[Carmen]

Sorry Tony, one or two posts from me and the whole thread seems to shut down!! Any one else experience that?

[greybeard]

Posted by Carmen (here)
Sorry Tony, one or two posts from me and the whole thread seems to shut down!! Any one else experience that?

There have been several similar threads recently Carmen so rest easy.
Unfortunately most of it is preaching to the choir.
Many guests visit the spiritual threads but only a small % of Avalonians do.

Chris

[Tony]

There are visitors who are interested, and that is good.
I'll be back tomorrow if the internet will let me
Been having a problem lately.


Tony
buddhainthemud.com

[ROMANWKT]

Hi Tony long time Sir

Could you find out for what real reason should we meditate, and also what your teaching have about sleep, as to why and what for??

Sorry for the questions Tony, Love and regards to you both

roman

[Tony]

Posted by ROMANWKT (here)
Hi Tony long time Sir

Could you find out for what real reason should we meditate, and also what your teaching have about sleep, as to why and what for??

Sorry for the questions Tony, Love and regards to you both

roman

Hello Roman,

The real reason for meditation is to become aware of our true nature.
It releases us from the confused ideas we hold on to about ourselves.

Meditation is a word to describe looking into the mind,
and seeing clearly what is going on in it. It's a refining
process.

However first we have to control all the circling chatter.
To do this we use mindfulness: focused techniques,
such as being aware of the breath.

Gradually the mind quietens, and we become more aware.
This moves us into awareness meditation. Aware of thoughts
and all the senses.

Gradually we become aware of the awareness itself. This is
the feeling of "I am".

Eventually, the awareness finds there is nothing else present,
other than pure awareness. Merely spontaneous presence and no 'I am'.

The feeling of "I am" takes time, and so is still a duality.
Spontaneous presence just 'is', there is no time delay.

The real reason to meditate is to become aware of our true nature -
spontaneous presence - which has been there all the time.

Gradually through clarity all fantasies drop away (they never existed
in the first place).

Peace of mind brings better sleep, to recharge our bodies energies.
It is also possible to be sleep-aware.


We all get glimpses of pure awareness, for without this, we would not be.

What we need to do is sustain pure awareness, and this is expressed
in our conduct, which is merely the continuity of the meditation
experience in daily life .

In other words...genuine love and compassion.




It's nice to chat with you again Roman.
Tony




PS. Of course one does not have to meditate!
There is a method of direct recognition of the
nature of mind.

[Tony]

Forums are not the best place
to present subtle nuisances of experience in spirituality.
We need a refined atmosphere for that.
Everything can be refined,
however we are not all standing in the same place.

Tony

[chocolate]

Posted by greybeard (here)
[...]
Unfortunately most of it is preaching to the choir.
Many guests visit the spiritual threads but only a small % of Avalonians do.

Chris

The spirituality section is the only one I care for. And I do agree, most of this is a bit like preaching to the choir, but there are those threads that are really spiritually constant and enlivening. This is intended to be a bit brief, and I understand that.

Thank you all for your input.

But I want to make a small note re this quote:

Posted by Tony (here)
The Divided Self

Modern psychology believes a 'divided self' is an 'illusory' self, separated from our 'real' self
– it is a disorder. The popular view is that the self is the experiencer, and that there isn't
any experiences without the experiencer, the self.
The disorder is acting out what we are not, and we therefore create a false self.

That is a true statement, and there are no arguments that can be valid in stating that it is not. But this state is achieved after some serious trauma, both physical and psychological, especially at an early stage in life, when the mind and the HM are still working on establishing a relationship ( fragile process ) to provide for a 'normal' human 'experience' later on in life.

It is one aspect of 'being' to realize one has a conditioned mind as a general prerequisite for living a human life, to be aware of the pure awareness of the higher mind, and another -- to go into the area of the 'split mind' or 'divided self' ( personality dis-order ) as a medical condition.
Don't believe when someone claims that there is no proof of the 'split mind' or 'divided self' in psychology, because there is, it is just too complex to give an explanation to a general untrained audience, and one that has no necessary background to understand where the terms and conditions come from.

[Tony]

Trauma: emotional shock following a stressful event or a physical injury,
which may lead to long-term neurosis. It comes from the word wound.

All sentient beings are wounded, more or less. We are a neurotic species:
we believe in an imagined 'self' image and defend this which creates aggression,
mostly reacting from the primitive brain: fight, flight or freeze.

What can cause wounds?

Being hated for one's religion.
Upbringing.
Class.
Speech.
School.
Job.
Gaming.
Talking to people.
Family.
News.
TV.
Conspiracy forums.
Predictions.
Big ears.
Too fat.
Too thin.
Society.
Health.
Know alls.
Watching loved ones die needlessly in hospital.
Medical staff that are institutionalised.
Being in an aggressive world...

...I'm sure you can all add to the list


Some of us are sensitive. Some of us are insensitive. Some of us have empathy. Some of
us have zero empathy. Who is to say what is, or is not, traumatic?
Everything has an effect on the mind.

Humans live in hope and fear. This hope and fear splits us from our true nature of inner peace.



Tony